Reconnected: Internet back up to full speed in Vietnam

One of Vietnam's three major submarine internet cables, the Asia Pacific Gateway (APG), has resumed full service after it ruptured on June 20.

The repair work was completed a week ahead of schedule, internet service providers said on Thursday.

The cause of the rupture has yet to be established.

The APG runs for 10,400 kilometers, and links Japan with Hong Kong, China, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam.

Vietnam is also connected to the world wide web by the Intra Asia cable, which connects Vietnam to Hong Kong and other parts of Asia, and the Asia America Gateway (AAG), which links Vietnam to the U.S.

The APG cost $450 million and was launched on January 3 with speeds 20 times higher than the AAG, which has gained notoriety in Vietnam for its unreliability.

Thanks to the APG, Vietnamese service providers are relying less on the AAG, which, in 2016 alone, ruptured three times – in March, June and August.

Nearly 49 million people in Vietnam, or more than half of the country’s population, are online.